The billiard sports comprise sports using a cue and a table for individual games such as billiards, pool, carom, and snooker, where tables for carom and snooker are generally larger than the pool table. In several of the billiard sports, game balls are propelled, sometimes with substantial force, into an open pocket.
Billiard sports tables sometimes last longer than the assemblies comprising the pocket to receive game balls. In addition, original equipment of billiard sports tables must be exceeding sturdy, including the assemblies for receiving game balls.
It is well known to provide alternate pocket assemblies for billiard sports tables comprising a rail piece to be fixed to the rail portion of the table, whereupon a ball receiving piece is fixed to the rail piece.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,045,451 discloses such a construction, where rail piece 21 is fixed to an opening in the table rail, and a ball receiving piece 32 is removable and will be fixed in a slot 22 on rail piece 21.
An alternate method of providing a pocket assembly is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 46,156, a corner opening is formed in the table rail and is filled by fixing an assembly to receive game balls by screwing two brackets into available table rail ends.
There is a need for an assembly to receive game balls for a billiard sports table where the rail piece is relatively resistant to very long term wear and a ball receiving piece is very rugged, but is relatively low cost and easily replaceable.